I don't talk about my older sister a lot, in fact some of you might be surprised to even know that I have one. She is about as opposite from me as you can get standing just over 5 feet with her curly red hair. My sister Jill is 28 and probably the best gift our family has been given. She was born with CriDuChat and cannot talk or independently care for herself, so she lives in a group home about 30 minutes away from my parents.
I could instantly relate to the character Anna in the book while Jill fits the role of Kate. Growing up I often felt neglected or overlooked due to my sister, she required far more attention than I did and often demanded it with her physical tantrums. Don't worry Mom the older I get the more I realize you were not actually neglecting me, you just didn't give me 200% of your attention at all times ;)
I remember so vividly as a child wanting nothing more than a "normal" sister, it wasn't fair that my family was the one getting all the stares, that my "friends" were scared to come over that my sister didn't get punished the way I did because "she doesn't understand". I remember shoving my sister down the stairs because she shoved me first and I remember crunching up a bag of chips and spreading them around her then yelling at my mom to come see the mess "she had made" terrible I know, trust me I know. I remember the day I almost watched my sister die because she swallowed a nectarine pit whole and my grandma fished it out of her throat while I cried on the phone to 911. I remember lying in my bed as a teenager so angry at the world because I was fighting with my parents and I had no one there to be angry at them with me, I had no closet to shop in and no one to tell all my secrets to, I had no one to cry to when boys broke my heart and I remember the day my sister moved out of our house. She sat in the window of her new room crying, not understanding why she was in this strange new place alone, I saw my dad cry that day and I wondered if he would cry when I would move away 2 years later.
Needless to say my childhood was different than most.
Throughout high school I became incredibly protective over my sister and I sometimes still have a hard time being in public situations with her, it's not because I am embarrassed of her but it's because she deserves better than the stares. Jill has taught me so much without saying a word and it's because of her that I want to go back to school to become a special education teacher. I want to make sure kids like her are given every possible ounce of attention they can have from someone who knows first-hand how wonderful they are.
There are still days that I want that "normal" sister. A month will pass and I realize that I haven't seen Jill and just want to pick up the phone but know she can't be on the other line, I still wish I had her closet to shop in and that I could complain to her about how much my love life sucks, but I wouldn't trade her for the world. I simply can't describe how good it feels to have someone who absolutely adores you the way my sister adores me, and I know I wouldn't be half the person I am today without her in my life.
Although this picture is about 8 years old Jill doesn't look any different, other than she doesn't wear glasses anymore, as for me well, let's just say things have improved haha. Hopefully Norene is reading this and realizes she didn't send me the picture I requested and I can replace it with something a bit more current :)
Norene never fails me, thanks for the updated pict Mom! This one was taken last September when the fam came for a visit, I want my brown hair back .... and maybe Jill has changed more than I thought over the last 8 years!
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